Mason Core and College Requirements

Welcome! Mason Core classes are all about setting you up for academic success. With them, you will build a base of skills and knowledge -- a base that will support you as you complete the requirements for your own course of study, and serve you for years after you leave your formal education behind.

Earning a BA degree from the College of Humanities and Social Sciences? The college's requirements for BA students, described below, will furnish you with tools to navigate the complexities of our global society.

Catalog Year

Catalogs from different years may contain different requirements. Students must graduate under the requirements published in one single catalog. Students have to have the same catalog year for all components of their degrees—the requirements for Mason Core, for college requirements, and for the requirements of their major and concentration, if any.

Students should be aware of their catalog year when planning their course of study. For questions about which catalog year applies, see an advisor.   

Requirements for Previous Catalog Years

See the pages in the Mason Core Requirements Archive below for earlier catalog years.

Requirements for Catalog Year 2020-2021

Mason Core Requirements

• Written communication (6 credits): ENGH 100 or ENGH 101, and ENGH 302
• Oral communication (3 credits)
• Quantitative reasoning (3 credits)
• Information technology and Computing (3 credits)
• Arts (3 credits)
• Global Understanding (3 credits)
• Literature (3 credits)
• Natural science (7 credits)
• Social and behavioral science (3 credits)
• Western civilization/world history (3 credits): HIST 100 or HIST 125
  (Transfer students have other options for fulfilling the western civilization/world history requirement; see link below.)
• Writing Intensive (3 credits)
• Synthesis or Capstone Experience (varies; minimum 3 credits)

Under some circumstances, students may use a single course to fulfill a Mason Core requirement and a college requirement or a requirement for the major. See your academic advisor for more information.

College Requirements for BA Students

Students receiving a BA degree have the following additional requirements.

• One course (3 credits) in philosophy or religious studies: Fulfilled by any course in PHIL or RELI except PHIL 323, 324, 327, 393, 460. PHIL 253 and RELI 235 cannot be used to fulfill both the philosophy/religious studies requirement and the Mason Core literature requirement.
• One course (3 credits) in social and behavioral science: 3 credits in addition to the university-wide requirement in social and behavioral science for a total of 6 credits. The two courses used to fulfill the combined college and university requirements must be from different disciplines in the social and behavioral sciences. The courses used to fulfill this requirement must be in addition to the course used to fulfill the university requirement in western civilization/world history. This requirement may be fulfilled by any course in ANTH, CRIM, ECON, GOVT, HIST (except 100 or 125), LING, PSYC, or SOCI and these courses in GGS: 101, 103, 110, 301, 303, 304, 305, 306, 315, 316, 320, 325, 330, 357, 380.
• One course (3 credits) in non-Western culture. The same course cannot be used to fulfill this requirement and the Mason Core requirement in global understanding. Students who have attended high school in a non-Western country for four or more years may be eligible for a waiver of this requirement. The webpage Waiver of the Non-Western Requirement has more information.
• Proficiency in a foreign language through the intermediate level.  This requirement may be fulfilled by completing a course in a foreign language numbered 202 (or higher level courses taught in the language) or achieving a satisfactory score on an approved proficiency test. A three course sequence in American Sign Language (EDSE 115 American Sign Language (ASL) I, EDSE 116 American Sign Language (ASL) II, and EDSE 219 American Sign Language (ASL) III) will also meet the foreign language requirement. Students who are already proficient in a second language may be eligible for a waiver of this requirement. Additional information on waivers can be found at the Office of Undergraduate Academic Affairs.

Under some circumstances, students may use a single course to fulfill more than one college-level requirement. It is also possible under some circumstances to use a single course to fulfill a Mason Core requirement and a college requirement or a requirement for the major. See an academic advisor for more information.

Transfer Students

George Mason University has Guaranteed Admission Agreements with certain Virginia community colleges. Transfer students who are offered GAA admission and meet all of the terms of the GAA agreement with their Virginia community college may be eligible for a waiver of George Mason University's lower level Mason Core requirements. GAA students who receive the waiver are still required by the university to complete English 302 and a synthesis course. GAA students who receive the waiver and are pursuing a degree in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences are considered to have met all college requirements except for proficiency in a foreign language (required of BA students).